Another day successfully conquered without my man!

If I ever get any bright ideas about sending the guys around here off on vacations again somebody, please, please knock some sense into me.

It sounded so good.  So very doable.  A three day conference in Phx. AZ.  I think it through, add up the cost/stress/time of trying to get myself and Noelle out there with Steve plus needing to find someone to take over shipping well enough to mostly know what they were doing in such a short amount of time…The answer was obvious.  Steve and his brother would go and my SIL and I with the two babies would stay here and keep the business going.  BAAAAAD IDEA! I had forgotten that rule that seems to pop up when least expected “If it can go wrong…It WILL.”

True to form we are promptly back ordered on 3 products our first day of shipping.  We also receive two of the biggest orders this company has ever had.  I looked at the invoices and cringed.  Each one will probably take about 2 solid hours to pack up and ship.  With the babies attention spans not lasting more than 30 minutes of self entertainment at a time just those boxes alone seemed overwhelming.

We made it successfully through the two shipping days though.  I was going to be uber responsible and do every USPS this morning but I think I’ll just let it go until Monday.  We’ll fight the good fight again then.  Doodles did better when I carried her on my back in the Ergo instead of on the front. I liked it better too.  Not sure why it took me this long to try that! Freed up my arms so that I could still pack boxes and “hold” her at the same time.  She’s good for about an hour that way.  Steve’s Mom has been great.  Coming by and running misc. errands for us so that we don’t have to pack up the babies and leave the house for odds and ends. 

The hardest thing about this conference has been the looooong hours the guys have of sessions leaving virtually no time for them to call except during their very brief breaks.  The sessions end at midnight our time due to the time difference.  I waited up hoping Steve would call.  He did.  Thought I would cry with thankfulness just being able to hear his voice.  How I miss that man!  Doodles misses him and her Uncle John a lot too.  She keeps looking around with a concerned look on her face.  Especially at night in our bed it’s obvious she’s looking for him and she gets very worried/concerned when he isn’t there.  Keep explaining to her that he will be back in a few days but I am pretty sure she doesn’t understand what that means.

Planning on killing time this weekend doing as little as possible.  Little includes watching movies and re heating leftovers for food. Oh, and taking several naps to try and get caught up on missed sleep. Here’s hoping the hours fly by between now and Monday night!

He left this morning.  Hasn’t been gone all that long.  I miss him so badly already.  Realized again how very blessed I am to have a husband that works from home.  Have taken for granted all the little ways he helps me out day in and day out.  Our bed seems so big and empty.  Will be sleeping with Doodlebugs tonight.  We’ll probably both sleep better and it will help me not feel so lonely.

Doodles had a good day.  She is enjoying playing with her cousin ‘Mandy.  They have a pacifier war going on with little skirmishes that break out from time to time.  I have a theory that pacifiers are sort of like baby money/currency.  No matter how many they have they want more.  Cracked me up to see the two babies with their own respective pacifiers firmly clenched between toothless gums have a grab battle over the others.  Both baby girls are very sweet and all things considered very kind to each other.  Another favorite past time is bumper cars with the Walkers.  ‘Mandy maneuvers a lot better than Doodles.  This is fortunate for her because Doodles loves to get up as much speed as possible and ram into ‘Mandy’s walker.  Watching the girls play Walker Bumper Cars is like watching slugs race. Everything is in slow motion.  You can cook supper, set the table, make tea, wash the dishes and pack up the leftovers in the amount of time it takes them to bump their way from the kitchen to the living room. 

My SIL Steph and I manned shipping by ourselves this morning.  It was quite the stressful proposition trying to process shipping labels and then package all of the boxes and get them out the door before FedEx and USPS picked up.  The babies cooperated initially by playing pleasantly but soon it came time for mid morning naps with no Mommies available to put them down for naps.  One point I realized just how crazy it had gotten when I was trying to pack a box with a baby on both hips. Where IS that third arm when you need it??

Tomorrow is going to be another long day.  Looking forward to the weekend!

In honor of Steve’s birthday coming up reeeeaally soon, and in celebration of our house selling I decided we needed to get away.  We also have a CRAZY week ahead of us with Steve going to be gone for 5 solid days.  Makes me so sad just to think about it.  We have not been apart for more than 2 nights ever since we were married…And those two nights were pure torture for me.  Although we’ll miss him like crazy we’ll be alright though.

We were able to make our one night escape to a beautiful little cottage on the otherside of Nashville.  Unfortunately we didn’t get any pictures of the three of us together.  These shall have to suffice.  Se

Steve and Noelle watching the pond.

Noelle and I getting our feet wet.  The little fishies like to nibble toes!

Daddy helps Noelle dip her chubby toes in.

“Dad, look!  There is a baby down there with all those fish…Such a cute baby too.  With a pink shirt and blue pants….Wonder why there is a baby in the water…Hmm.”

The next morning Steve slept in while I took Noelle for a little walk around the Cottage.  First we stopped at the swing on the front porch.  Noelle got to practice balancing sitting up as the swing rocked back and forth.

Then it was on to the woods.  Where a freshly rain washed leaf was carefully selected and given to Munchkin baby for entertainment purposes.

The leaf was carefully and seriously studied.

Examined for any structural flaws.

Having passed the stringent examination the leaf was then approved for the ultimate test.  TASTE! It was deemed a horrible failure in the taste department but still an acceptable toy.  We then moved on to the goldfish pond for a last visit with the leaf in tow.

There the leaf, Noelle and the statues meditated on the sound of the water flowing over the rocks while watching the brightly colored fish swim by.

In spite of the over exposed look (I think that is what it is called???  Or maybe it’s the contrast being whacked out…I seriously know Nothing whatsoever about photography as those of you who know anything about it can easily tell from the pictures I take) Anyway.  In spite of this picture being totally messed up I thought it was a very cool effect considering no photo shopping was done with it at all.  I love how her little feet just glow in contrast to the rocks and water. 

The one night away was sooo incredibly wonderful.  Gave our little family a chance to just be *us*.  Something that hasn’t happened very much in our marriage, and especially since Baby Doodles got here!  We are now very refreshed and ready to face the crazy weeks to come. 

I have always been crazy about Pooh Bear.  Yes, Yes, Corny I know.  Probably evil to those of you who boycott Disney.

Sorry, but I just love my Pooh Bear and all the 100 Acre Woods Characters. 

We finalllllly got Noelle’s crib set up.  Steve’s Mom bought her a Winnie the Pooh Bed Crib set.  It is just adorable!!

Noelle was quite surprised.  I just love her little facial expressions.

“It’s MINE? Just for me??”

“Wow.  So cool.” 
She was literally bouncing she was so excited.  Quite hilarious and enjoyable to watch.

“Aaaah, yes.  I could definitely sleep here.  I love it.”

She slept in it almost all night last night and took her nap in it today.  So far so good.  She enjoys the scenes on the bumper pads.  Just sat there and played with the ruffles and cooed happily to herself.

I love our little Doodles so very much.  She is getting to be so much FUN!

BabyBug got her first rash.  Popped up out of nowhere.  To help it heal as fast as possible we had her out of diapers for about a day and a half.  Happily for all of us, but especially her, it healed completely in that amount of time.  I am going to proceed to describe what I learned during this experience just in case some other first time Mommy reader out there doesn’t know some of this stuff. 

First of all I did not previously realize that there are two types of common diaper rashes.  One is because of skin irritation and damage usually due to acidic poop.  This is the kind that *most* diaper rash creams/ointments available out there are designed to treat.  The other kind however is a yeast based rash.  This is the type that Noelle had pop up overnight.  Initially it may be difficult to tell which one it is, and it may be a combination of both.  With Noelle the major indicator that it was a yeast rash was that after the first night I put a diaper rash cream on it and the next morning it was a LOT worse!   The reason for this is that Yeast thrive in moist environments and most soothing diaper creams guarantee a nicely coated gooey little protected environment for them to grow. 

So, my newly acquired guidelines for yeast rashes:

1: Do NOT put diaper rash cream on a yeast based rash unless it has specific anti fungal properties like Coconut Oil.  Avoid sprinkling baby powders on the rash as well, particularly if they have a corn starch base.  I had been given an anti yeast baby bottom powder by the company “Bonny Bottom” that helped with her rash.  From what I have been told Baking Soda can be applied and it doesn’t help feed the yeast.  I didn’t end up trying this though so can’t tell you for sure how effective it is.

2: Keep the rash dry at all costs.  Best option is to go diaperless for at least one day.  We all know this isn’t possible a lot of the time so shoot for super frequent diaper changes.  Every time you change the diaper if you can blow dry the rash on the lowest heat setting for about five minutes (Making sure you don’t over heat/burn tender little bottom!)  Heat kills yeasties and they can’t live/grow in a dry area.  Another great thing to do that we think helped a lot with Noelle is to take her outside into the sun and let the sun dry the area out several times a day.  Was told that breast milk applied to the rash and left to air dry a couple of times a day will also greatly help to heal a yeast based rash.  This is another thing I didn’t personally try although I would have if it had continued on into the second day.

3:  I gave Noelle pro biotics (good bacteria that will inhibit the growth of Yeast and in some cases even eat it) and I am positive that also significantly contributed to the quick demise of this rash.  I will continue to give these to her as a followup for a couple of weeks to make sure that her system has enough good bacteria in it to keep a yeast uprising from happening again.

4) The one thing we did that we noticed IMMEDIATE results from was giving her a warm bath in Sea Salts.  The wonderful properties of sea salts are well documented for a huge array of skin ailments etc and we had read this suggested so decided that it was worth a try.  The difference from when she got into the bath and out was immediately noticeable.  If I ever have a future problem with this sort of thing with her I will keep a cup of sea salt water made up and apply it to her bottom several times a day.  Salt kills yeast, or at the very least provides an environment that it can’t continue to grow in and many of the properties in the salts promote healthy tissue repair and healing.  Important to note!  This is not regular ol’ table salt we are talking about using here.  I had a friend try Epsom salts and she said she could not tell that they helped at all.  It is important to get real Sea Salts.  Mediteranean if you can find them.  They are often available in Health Food Stores and a lot of places on-line carry them. 

I am so glad to have Doodles back into diapers.  Talk about convenience! Although it was sort of nice to be able to do this.  It allowed us to get very in tune with her elimination habits.  Her little potty is getting a lot more use now so that was an un expected and really good benefit.

If  you all would please pray that our House closing will go through with no problems tomorrow.  For those of you who don’t know our house in NM has been on the market ever since we moved this Spring.  We had an offer on it in it’s first month of being on the market but that buyers financing fell through in spite of being pre approved.  We lost valuable time during the peak selling time by the time we got it re listed.  The market in NM is particularly bad right now so we feel very fortunate to have gotten this second, good offer, especially as we head into the dead winter months.  Our Realtor told us that only about one out of every ten houses currently on the market in the Rio Rancho area of NM is selling.  Makes us additionally grateful for these buyers!  Anyway, if you would just pray that nothing goes wrong this time we would really appreciate it.  The chances of getting another decent offer in on this place before Spring is very low indeed.  It will be a great relief to us to get it sold.  My nerves are shot since the last time we went through this process we didn’t find out until the actual closing date that the other buyers financing had fallen through…So, here’s hoping for no unpleasant surprises tomorrow!

I have become entirely forgettable.  You know the type.  In a group they are one of the faces.  Not too nice, not too smart, not too dumb.  Occasionally add something to the conversation/discussion but not usually not enough to make an impression either good or bad. 

This is going to take some getting used to.  Surprisingly I miss being remembered.  Miss having unique enough quirks expressed that I was actually somebody worthy of a name to go with that face in a sea of faces.  Gone are the days where I was the ditzy fun, bubbly blond that was nice and sweet if a bit spacy.

Sometimes I find myself taking a look at my life and wondering who I even am anymore.  Have evolved so much since marriage and even more since having Noelle.  Feels like I have morphed into a totally new individual.  I miss the old me.  She fit into pants much better for one… But she was a lot more fun too.  This crazy, hectic life of ours leaves me feeling like a juggler with one or two too many balls in the air.  Instead of executing a flawless routine of balls swirling through the air it feels as though I am simply trying to bat balls into the safest corners possible without breaking something.

Ironically now that I am officially a “Vanilla” person, due to our rather public presence through our business I feel under more scrutiny than ever before.  My NAME is recognized, and my face sometimes from a picture in our catalog or website.  It scares me a little bit.  I saw what public scrutiny did to people who worked in politics.  This is nowhere even CLOSE to that but it’s still disconcerting.  I feel an added pressure when I have people over to serve something super “healthy” or I might be disappointing to them.  I feel guilty sometimes for struggling to deal with some of the normal things that other new Mom’s deal with because I’m supposed to “have it all together.”  In reality no one is putting this pressure on me but myself.  It’s an annoying first born tendency thing I’ve never been able to shake off.

Instead of dwelling on how I feel about all this I should be encouraging myself with truth. 

- My Man loves me so wonderfully and unconditionally.  Even when I let him down he is so patient, gracious and loving.

- God gave our baby girl to us for a reason.  We are not (and will never be!) perfect parents to her, but we are the parents He chose for her.   By God’s grace and mercy she will  receive what she needs from us, and specifically me as her Mom as she grows up.

- God is so good. 
All the time. 
Forever and ever. 
He is ever merciful and gracious to us. 
Ever our faithful provider. 
In my weakness He is made strong. 

It is time to take our wee pink clad one to bed.  Her soft, chubby baby hand is gently stroking my face.  I am suddenly reminded that to her, I am most memorable.  <Happy sigh>  Motherhood is definitely worth it.

Although I would still like to fit into those pants again someday. 

My brother John and I learned yesterday that a very old man had died.  Tears immediately filled my eyes and a sense of loss overwhelmed me.  Mr. James M. was a very rare, special man.   He was a simple man.  Hard working.  A farmer who loved and studied the land.  Shrewd and wise in his business dealings. 

His farm land adjoined our families little 1 acre plot of land in the small town we grew up in.  He was in our lives from the time we were born.  From letting the boys roam his farm as they grew up, letting us pasture our horses in his pasture a season or two, to generously giving us gifts from his seemingly always bountiful garden. He unfailingly inquired after our health, progress with school, and what we had going on in our lives when he would see us out in the yard.

He was a rarity in our tiny town.  In a place where people lived and breathed gossip he seemed immune.  The worst thing I can ever remember him saying about anyone was “They was raised different I guess.”

His wife died several years ago.  I don’t remember for sure how long they had been married but think it was safely over the 50 year mark.   In the midst of his grief he still conducted himself with a dignity although we could see how difficult it was for him to piece his life back together with her gone.  I remember one thing from this time that has stayed with me over the years.  He had an ancient, literally falling apart house on his property.  The home had been abandoned for many years.  It was not far from the property line.  I was out walking in the yard one day and saw him standing there looking at the overgrown house with it’s broken windows.  There in the old, threadbare coat he always wore he cried.  He was a tall, big, strong man.  Working a full day of farm work into his eighties.  But he sobbed like a child.  I quickly walked away hoping he did not notice me as he mourned.

It is difficult to even attempt to put into words what he meant to me.  A part of my childhood, a pillar of the community.  A man of conscience.  A man of patience and wisdom.   The best neighbor anybody could ever wish for.

He never met Noelle.  That saddens me.  I know he would have enjoyed her.  Before I married and moved away he remembered fondly memories of when his Grandaughter and I were both small, and how it was for him to believe that we were grown up and getting married.   His Grandchildren were his passion.  He would beam with pride as he talked of each one.  The grades they made, their accomplishments in sports or academic achievements.

The world has lost a treasure.  He is mourned by all who knew him.

John is attending the funeral tomorrow.  I wish I could be there.  Just to say goodbye to him and to attempt to tell his family how much he was appreciated.  I’m sure they know though.  They are his living legacy.  A testament to the man that he was.

When Noelle was about 6 weeks old she met a very handsome little fellow named Boaz.   That very first meeting they started playing a game, and have continued to play the game every time they’ve seen each other since.  It has provided great amusement to their parents.    Last night I was able to get pictures.  As usual I seem to snap just a second “off” to get the really cute shots and I had to use the flash which makes poor Noelle’s overly white skin look extra washed out…But even with all that they are still cute!

This is how the game goes.  Boaz walks over to her and with a serious demeanor observes her sucking her paci.  She solemnly observes him right back.  Then Boaz reaches out and takes the pacifier out of her mouth, something that would warrant loud protestations and fussing under normal circumstances.  After her “plug” is pulled she either continues to look at him, grin, and or makes squealing “talking” noises.  Then he pokes it back in her mouth and starts all over again.  These pictures aren’t exactly a fair representation of what usually happens because typically they are focused on playing instead of being distracted with a giant flashing light.

Let the game begin!  Paci in place, Boaz in position and Noelle with her usual solemn demeanor.

Then a really adorable variation occurred.  Boaz leaned in and kissed her on the forehead!  It was SO so sooo cute.  I missed getting the actual kiss but got him heading in for it.  Noelle is a lot less interested in the kiss than she is in why he isn’t returning the Pacifier the way he’s supposed to. 

After the kiss he returned the Paci. 

I am personally in love with Boaz’s mop of curls.  Ringlets that any straight haired girl would die for!   His Mom says that he really likes blondes as an explanation for why he enjoys playing with Noelle so much.  Kid must be really intuitive to figure out that she’s going to be a blonde from the multi colored fuzz her little head currently sports. 

The two of them are just hilarious to watch.  Boaz took breaks from The Game to push her around the room,  occasionally parking her in the “corner” while he went to take a break.  She would crane her neck around towards him while making little noises as if to say “Uhm, you are going to come back and get me, right?  This is rather boring staring at the wall you know…”  If he took too long to come back and get her she would stop playing the helpless victim and back herself out of the corner using her own two feet.  After a while he got tired of her being in the walker.  We heard her fussing and went over to find out what was going on.  Boaz had both hands gripping the front of her sleeper trying to pick her up.  Poor guy couldn’t understand what he was doing wrong! lol   

I am so glad she is learning to play well with other babies/toddlers.  Hopefully she’ll learn good baby manners and won’t be one of these babies that goes around hitting other babies on the heads!

Today we were able to finally meet some friends of friends.  Greg, Nancy and their children are amazing!!  We greatly enjoyed our time of fellowship with them.  Noelle was a little star since the children and parents absolutely adore babies.  Such a little ham!  She seemed to love being passed around from person to person.  Here she is being held by one of Nancy’s several beautiful daughters.

Nancy was SUCH an incredible encouragement to me as a young Mom.  Her obvious love and passion for her children was touching and humbling to witness.  Rarely have I ever met a Mom more willing to sacrifice herself in so many ways for the benefit and health of her children. In spite of some circumstances that would have absolutely broken and devastated most women she is a sweet spirited example of joy and perseverance in the midst of trials.  She is a very special lady and I am honored to have been able to spend time with her.
 
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

As a follow up to the Potty Time post for clarification purposes.

1) I am probably the worlds most inconsistent person.  My purpose in giving Noelle time on her little potty is simply to make the initial connection between the potty and what it is to be used for.  I don’t have the time, patience, structure and discipline to do the No Diapers thing 100%!!  My hat is off to any of you that are able to do it.  I think it’s a wonderful thing but takes far more consistency than I am personally capable of with our current life style. 

2)  I have no expectations of being able to do this with subsequent children.  Who knows? I might end up shocking myself and doing it with the next baby, but if our lives are even a smidgen busier there is no way it’ll ever happen.  And I am totally Ok with that.  I have a full understanding that things change when you have 2 children, and change even more with 3 and so on.  My personal theory is that after Baby three or four (depending on the age range between them) it gets a wee bit easier on some levels because you have more hands available to help, but time will show me if my theory actually holds water in real life.  I am doing this with Noelle because I CAN.  Won’t be beating myself up, or feeling guilty if it doesn’t work out with any other kids.  It’s been a fun experiment and to be honest I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how little effort it takes to do something like this.  We’ll see if it pays off when it comes time to potty train her for real in a year or so. 

3) I have more cute pictures and needed an excuse to post them…Hence the continuation of the subject with clarifications. 

She has a hard time with this book because it’s so big it’s hard for her little hands to hold up.  Much less get the pages open!  Normally I sit beside her and read this one out loud to her.

Just had to post this picture because it highlights her little Alfalfa Sprout tuft of hair on the top of her (mostly) bald little baby noggin!   You might have to look closely…Right in the middle, Yup. The part that is standing on end.

Someone mentioned tonight that the poor babe is going to need counseling when she gets old enough to realize that her Mom has plastered pictures of her potty process on-line for all the world to see.  I hereby solemnly vow to go back and hide these posts when she gets old enough to know and care.  Y’all remind me Ok?  Cuz at the pace that I’m currently losing brain cells I am likely to totally forget this solemn promise until after it’s too late and Noelle is scarred for life.